Prof. Lopez teaches labor economics and introductory level courses, such as Principles of Economics I & II, as well as specialized topics courses on immigration and race & gender. She employs a diverse set of learning tools in her classes, such as small group work; experiments; multimedia; debates; individual research projects; and community-based learning.

Her research spans across three main areas: immigration, entrepreneurship, and poverty. Her work in these areas focuses on understanding and empirically estimating the factors that influence the migration decisions and labor market outcomes of Latinos and immigrants. In particular, she tries to understand how gender, U.S. immigration policy, and antipoverty policies shape labor market experiences. Prof. Lopez also engages in interdisciplinary research.